2. Manage expectations with clear information about shipping times
Providing clear information about shipping times in your online shop has many advantages, such as building customer trust and lowering cart abandonment rates. The estimated delivery date should be visible to the customer during checkout – before completing the order process. Additionally, consider including any product-specific or seasonal factors that could affect shipping. For example, when certain items have longer-than-average delivery times due to shipping from a warehouse further away or if it is temporarily unavailable. This information strengthens customer loyalty, highlights how you keep your shop up to date, and demonstrates that you care about providing the best possible customer experience.
3. Personalize communication about order status
Once the customer has placed an order, they want to be proactively informed about the shipping process. One way to make this more personal is via automated email or SMS notifications. Address customers by their first name and thank them for placing an order so they feel you are talking to them directly.
Another way to make the experience more personal is to set up your own branded shipment tracking page instead of sending customers to the delivery agent's tracking page. In this way, you can keep customers in your brand ecosystem and communicate about their order status more personally. For example, you can use the tracking page to make personalized recommendations of additional products specifically relevant to the ones they purchased.
Bonus tip! Branded packaging design for a customized experience
Packaging is also part of the shipping experience. Attractive packaging design allows an online shop to communicate its brand in a way that appeals to its target audience. And the unboxing experience can help you create a personal experience for each shopper. Including small surprises like free samples or vouchers relevant to the customer's purchasing history is an effective strategy to build lasting customer relationships. You can also include exclusive sales promotions and offer incentives to create a more customized experience.
But when designing your shipping materials, ensure your packaging is practical. More and more online retailers are switching to more sustainable packaging. For example, choosing paper instead of plastic, reusable materials instead of single-use products, and biodegradable packing peanuts instead of styrofoam or plastic.
More specifically, your customers (and delivery partners) want packaging that is sleek, not too bulky, and, ideally, can fit in a standard mailbox- minimal packaging can also help you save shipping costs!